Metro-North tracks inspected 2 days before crash

Martin B. Cassidy

Published
10:37 pm EDT, Tuesday, May 21, 2013

An Acela train operator waves to officials surveying the scene in Bridgeport on Tuesday, May 21, 2013, where a Metro-North train derailed the week before. On Tuesday, limited service between Grand Central and New Haven opened up. Officials plan to have a normal full-service schedule on Wednesday. less

An Acela train operator waves to officials surveying the scene in Bridgeport on Tuesday, May 21, 2013, where a Metro-North train derailed the week before. On Tuesday, limited service between Grand Central and ... more

An Acela train operator waves to officials surveying the scene in Bridgeport on Tuesday, May 21, 2013, where a Metro-North train derailed the week before. On Tuesday, limited service between Grand Central and New Haven opened up. Officials plan to have a normal full-service schedule on Wednesday. less

An Acela train operator waves to officials surveying the scene in Bridgeport on Tuesday, May 21, 2013, where a Metro-North train derailed the week before. On Tuesday, limited service between Grand Central and ... more

Robert Kulat, a spokesman for the FRA, said Metro-North inspected the tracks May 15 and found the tracks were in good condition. A more thorough semi-annual inspection yielded the same results, he said.

The collision of the two M-8 rail cars injured 76 people and shut down the New Haven Line east of South Norwalk for four days.

Both inspections concluded the tracks were properly aligned, and the wood, steel and other construction materials were in good shape, Kulat said.

On a commuter railroad like Metro-North, the more thorough inspection -- conducted by Sperry Rail Corporation in this case -- is required twice a year under the FRA's standards to ensure the tracks meet or exceed federal safety standards, Kulat said.

After the catastrophic derailment Friday, Metro-North Railroad crews built new tracks and repaired catenary and signal systems in time to restore modified service Tuesday afternoon.

The first Metro-North train, a set of M-8 cars out of Grand Central Terminal, carried passengers past the accident scene, arriving on schedule at the Bridgeport station at 4:32 p.m. Tuesday. The train later pulled into New Haven just before 5 p.m., a few minutes early.

With full service to be restored Wednesday morning, Metro-North and Amtrak ran fewer trains than usual Tuesday over the single track available on the 7-mile stretch between Greens Farms and Bridgeport.

Carlos Nelson, of Bridgeport, first expressed surprise and concern to be on the first train headed to New Haven after the accident, before laughing off his apprehension.

"This is the first one?" he asked as the train passed through Westport.

"I guess I'm a little nervous being the one to test it out."

Barbara Munoz, also of Bridgeport, said she was "a little apprehensive" as the train passed beneath the Interstate 95 overpass near Commerce Drive, where two trains collided last week.

But despite how quickly repairs were completed, Munoz said the ride felt fine, if not "a little bumpy," and he offered praise for those responsible for the fast turnaround.

"I was surprised the repairs were done so quickly," said Munoz, who commutes by train to her human resources job in Manhattan every day. "They've been very diligent. ... They stuck to doing what they had to do."

National Transportation Safety Board investigators probing the cause of the collision are reviewing copies of Metro-North Railroad's track maintenance and inspection records for the section of track in Bridgeport, and will verify if there were any missteps that need to be addressed, Kulat said.

"The NTSB investigation will answer that question," Kulat said.

An investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board into the rail crash has homed in on two sections of rail found at the scene of the collision that appear to have broken apart at the joint assembly which holds them together, they said.

Metro-North's tracks are classified as Class 4, the most common grade of rail track on commuter railroads across the country, which means they are maintained to a standard to allow passenger service operators to travel at speeds up to 80 miles per hour.

Investigators said this weekend that both trains involved in the crash were traveling close to 70 miles per hour, near the maximum speed Metro-North engineers set for the area, according to the railroad.

Both men declined comment on the National Transportation Safety Board's crash investigation and the early emphasis by investigators on two broken pieces of rail found at the site.

"We're going to have to see what the investigation says," Permut said.

About 50 percent of Metro-North's full service was restored at 3 p.m., just before the afternoon commute, the railroad announced on its website.

The first train expected to make the line's full westbound trip left New Haven at 4:23 p.m., arriving at Grand Central at 6:17 p.m.

Kulat said each railroad has primary responsibility for conducting required inspections and keeping records which are periodically audited by the FRA for compliance. The agency also conducts periodic spot inspections of sections of rail considered strategically important; conducting inspections of the section of Bridgeport track in March 2011 and October 2011 that found no problems.

Since 2003, the number of train derailments nationally has fallen 24 percent and collisions are down 77 percent, though most accidents and collisions have been caused by track issues, according to the administration.